Posted by Scott L. Schofield on March 16, 2000, at 7:35:17
In reply to Re: Educated Guess?/Amineptine, posted by KarenB on March 15, 2000, at 19:46:23
> Funny you should mention Amineptine, because a combination of that and Sulpiride are what did the trick for me, finally, after many, many years of suffering. Unfortunately, Amineptine has been discontinued and Sulpiride is not available here in the US. Starting last night, I am taking Nortriptyline and will add Topamax soon, as a mood stabilizer. I am hopeful...
Amineptine + sulpiride is a brilliant combination. My complements to the chef. (Who be he?)
There are those who claim that the antidepressant properties of Wellbutrin (bupropion) are due to its ability to inhibit the reuptake of dopamine (DA). My gut instinct tells me that this is not the case. I think it is more likely that it works because it may influence noradrenergic (norepinephrine, NE) pathways. I see people describe an "energizing" effect when using Wellbutrin more so than a mood-brightening effect. I just don't get the impression that Wellbutrin is that consistently robust in reducing anhedonia or increasing spontaneous motivation (the desire to do a whole bunch of different stuff). However, I would certainly give it a shot. As I've written before, I know someone who is doing well using a combination of Effexor (venlafaxine) and Wellbutrin. She claims that it is the Effexor that is responsible for contributing the mood-brightening effect, with the reduction in anhedonia and increase in motivation. She describes this motivational improvement as being "the wanna do's".
Personally, I think that the pro-dopaminergic effects of Effexor are underestimated. I would consider adding Effexor to nortriptyline, and then Wellbutrin to these two drugs if necessary. I am pretty confident that it would be a safe cocktail to try, and would cover quite a few pharmacological mechanisms at the same time. Wellbutrin makes me feel worse, so I've pretty much crossed it off my list. I'm playing around with the idea of getting a hold of amisulpiride (a blood relation to sulpiride) from Europe. I am even considering augmenting my treatment with one of the DA + NE drugs like mazindol (Mazinor). Most of these drugs are currently being used in the management of obesity. Have you ever heard of this being done?
Of course, if you have the potential for mania, you would want to establish a prophylactic mood-stabilizer regime before messing around with this stuff. What is the reason for the addition of Topamax (topiramate)?
Good luck.
Please keep me posted as to what recipies your chef comes up with.
Thanks.
- Scott
poster:Scott L. Schofield
thread:26793
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20000312/msgs/27178.html